Copyright The New York Times
With the start of early voting in the New York City mayor’s race just days away, the candidates will take the stage Wednesday night for a second and final debate. Leading the pack is Assemblyman Zohran Mamdani, 34, the Democratic nominee, who has maintained a double-digit lead in the polls for months. Former Gov. Andrew M. Cuomo, 67, who is running as an independent after losing to Mr. Mamdani in the primary, is polling in second place, and Curtis Sliwa, 71, the Republican nominee, is in third. Early voting begins on Saturday, Oct. 25. The general election will be held on Tuesday, Nov. 4. What time is the debate? The debate is scheduled for 7 p.m. Eastern and will last 90 minutes. Where can I watch it? The debate will air in full on Spectrum News NY1 and on WNYC radio. There will also be a livestream on YouTube. The New York Times will cover the debate with real-time commentary and analysis from our reporters. Who is hosting the debate? The debate will be hosted by NY1, in partnership with Spectrum Noticias, WNYC/Gothamist, The City, the Craig Newmark Graduate School of Journalism at CUNY, New York Law School, John Jay College of Criminal Justice and the Museum of the City of New York. Who are the moderators? The debate will be moderated by Errol Louis of Spectrum News NY1, Brian Lehrer of WNYC, and Katie Honan of The City. What happened at the first debate? Mr. Mamdani did not play it safe against his main opponent, Mr. Cuomo, when the candidates met onstage last Thursday for the first debate of the general election. The assemblyman accused the former governor of being beholden to President Trump and said he failed to understand the city’s affordability crisis. “If you think that the problem in this city is that my rent is too low, vote for him,” Mr. Mamdani said, referring to Mr. Cuomo’s attacks over his rent-stabilized apartment in Queens. “If you know the problem in this city is that your rent is too high, vote for me.” Mr. Sliwa, the founder of the Guardian Angels, a subway patrol group, also spent much of his time attacking Mr. Cuomo. Mr. Sliwa even compared Mr. Cuomo unfavorably to his own father, a three-term governor, telling him that he was “no Mario Cuomo.” Mr. Cuomo — looking for a breakout night — criticized Mr. Mamdani’s limited experience, his views on Israel and his leftist policies. “If you look at the failed mayors, they’re ones that had no management experience,” Mr. Cuomo said. “Don’t do it again.” What happened afterward? Both Mr. Cuomo and Mr. Sliwa walked onstage at last week’s debate needing to make strong cases for themselves as they trail Mr. Mamdani. The next morning, Mr. Cuomo called Mr. Sliwa “a spoiler” whose continued candidacy would only help Mr. Mamdani. “He cannot win,” Mr. Cuomo said, referring to Mr. Sliwa, admitting that it would be all but impossible for him to mount a comeback if Mr. Sliwa remained in the race. “You vote for Curtis, save yourself the time, and vote for Mamdani. That’s what this is.” Mr. Mamdani agreed with Mr. Cuomo’s assessment of his narrow path to victory. “What New Yorkers saw is the fact that it’s more of the same with Andrew Cuomo,” Mr. Mamdani said of the debate. “More of the same with the affordability crisis, more of the same style of politics.” Mr. Sliwa, for his part, has refused to entertain the possibility of dropping out, telling voters this weekend, “I have earned the right to be on that stage.”
